Improvement in railroad-spikes



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIon JAMES M. KENT, OF CAMPBELL, NEW YORK.

lMPROVEMENT IN RAILROAD-SPIKES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 163,208, dated May 11,1875; application filed October 24, 1874.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES M. KENT, of Campbell, in the county of Steubenand State of New York, have invented a new and valuable Improvement inRailroad-Spikes; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of thesame, reference being had to the annexed drawings making a part of thisspecification, and to the letters and figures of reference markedthereon.

The figures of the drawings are representations of my spike as used insecuring railroadties.

This invention has relation to devices which are especially designed forrigidly securing railroad-rails to the ties;

The object of the invention is to prevent the spikes from being casuallywithdrawn from the ties, thereby releasing the rails, and yet to allowthem to be readily removed with little labor, when desired.

My invention consists in the employment of a semi-cylindricalholding-spike having a half-head on its upper end and a projecting hookon its lower end, the holding-spike being also rounded opposite thehook,- and the diameter of the latter being equal to that of the hole inwhich it is inserted, and into which a semi-cylindrical key is drivenafter the holdingspike has been inserted into the hole, thus forcing thehook into the wood and securely retaining it in position, and at thesame time, from the peculiar shape of the hook, drawing theholding-spike downward upon the flange of the rail.

In the annexed drawings, A designates an ordinary T-rail, and B theusual tie. It has been heretofore customary to use an ordinary spike forsecuring the former to the latter, which use is liable to the objectionthat, owing to the leverage of the rails acting under the pressure of apassing train, they were freuently withdrawn, creating the necessity ofrequent inspection.

With a view to obviating this defect, I construct my holding-spike A asfollows: An examination of the drawings will show them to be ofsemi-cylindrical form, and that they are provided with a head, a, and aprojecting lip or hook or penetrating-point, a. The back face of theholding-spike A (see Fig. 2) is made rounding at its lower end, so thatwhen it is inserted into the hole in the tie, bored for that purpose,the hook and holding-spike will entirely fill up the hole. The upperface of the hook is inclined downward on the holding-spike when the key,hereinafter described, is driven home. The key B is also of like form,except the hook, and is of the same diameter in cross-sectionthroughout, and has also a head, I).

In using my spike I make a perforation at proper intervals along and ateach side of rails in the cross-tie, the said perforation being ofslightly less diameter than that of the combined spike and key, andpreferably of circular form. Into this perforation I first introduce thespike, with its penetrating-point downward, until the head a rests uponthe flange of the rail, the hook, with its rounded back, filling up theentire lower end of the hole. The semi-cylindrical key 13 is then placedin the same perforation and driven home by a few strokes of the hammer,forcing the hook a of the holding-spike into the tie, thedownwardly-inclined upper face of the hook, as it is driven into thewood, drawing the half-head a down upon the flange of the rail andsecurely holding it in position.

It will be evident that it will be necessary to withdraw the key Bbefore the holdingspike can possibly be started, and, as there is nostrain on the former, it will remain in place until taken out by aworkman, when it will be found that the removal of the spike A can beeasily accomplished.

As was before stated, my invention is designed more especially forsecuring rails to cross-ties, but it may be used as a means of rigidlysecuring stone to wood, wood to wood, and other analogous purposes.

By forming on its head a shoulder, l), and a stud, c, it may be used asa supportingspike for the ordinary strap-hinge, for supporting gates.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The half-headed semi-cylindrical holding- In testimony that I claim theabove I have spike A, provided at its lower end with the hereuntosubscribed my name in the presence hook a, having its upper facedownwardly inof two witnesses.

clined and its back, or fiat face, rounded op- JAMES M. KENT. posite thehook, in combination with the semi- Witnesses: cylindrical half-headedkey B, substantially J. S. ROBINSON,

as and for the purpose set forth. S. O. MASTERS.

